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Manchester United Legend Launches Scathing Attack on Michael Carrick… Does He Have a Point?

After Michael Carrick suffered his first defeat as Manchester United manager, with his side falling 2–1 to a 10-man Newcastle side, a former United star took to Instagram to vent his frustration.

Scholes, who made over 700 appearances for the Red Devils, posted a thinly veiled message on his Instagram story aimed at manager Michael Carrick.

“Michael has definitely got something special about him… cos Utd have been crap last 4 games… night 😘”

The story also oddly referenced Newcastle midfielder Sandro Tonali, with a red love heart placed beside his name.

🚨🚨| Paul Scholes posted this on Instagram after Manchester United’s defeat to Newcastle — but the story has now been deleted. pic.twitter.com/YxLhDW3Hkj
— CentreGoals. (@centregoals) March 5, 2026

It quickly circulated online before being removed, drawing criticism from fans who felt Scholes was undermining a former teammate publicly after the loss.

This is not the first time Scholes has landed himself in hot water this season when talking about his former club. On his podcast The Good, The Bad and The Football, which he hosts with ex-teammate Nicky Butt, the pair joked ahead of the Manchester Derby about what humiliations might await Lisandro Martinez as he prepared to face the towering presence of Erling Haaland.

As luck would have it, the Norwegian striker would last just 80 minutes on the pitch before getting hooked, whilst Martinez was praised for his defending—though, in truth, there was little for him to deal with.

Following the conclusion of the match, Martinez pointed out that while they are both welcome to say whatever they like on their podcast, he also invited football's answer to Statler and Waldorf round to his house to criticise him to his face.

“I think when someone gets so upset about something in the media or a podcast, to come out and say, ‘They can say what they want’ and ‘Come to my house’ and all that, f****** grow up,” Butt said.

“I’m f****** 50, I’m not going knocking on someone’s house saying can we have a chat. It’s ridiculous. And if you’re going to get that precious, you better be s*** hot every week.”

Nicky Butt's response to Lisandro Martinez 😳🤬 pic.twitter.com/vHMArn46xz
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) January 20, 2026

Scholes' response was less confrontational, stating that he messaged the Argentine on social media but had yet to receive a response.

But last night showed that Scholes was yet to learn.

Despite being one of Manchester United’s greatest-ever players—winning 20 major honours across two decades—the ex-midfielder seems unable to resist the occasional dig at his former club.

He is not entirely wrong in his assessment. Over their past four matches, Manchester United have not shown the same level of intensity they showed when defeating Manchester City and Arsenal in Michael Carrick’s first two games in interim charge.

On several occasions, it has taken late heroics from Benjamin Sesko to rescue results. The Slovenian struck a 96th-minute equaliser against West Ham United, before also being called again to score the winning goals in victories over Everton and Crystal Palace.

Yet, you might expect that rather than publicly criticising him, Paul Scholes would be inclined to advocate and uplift a former teammate.

Fans have since come to the defence of Michael Carrick, with many claiming on X (formerly Twitter) that Paul Scholes comes across as bitter.

It’s Carrick, you know. Can’t believe the chippiness from Scholes. It’s Carrick who's helping out the club he loves, stepping into the breach after Amorim’s meltdown. You can question Carrick's subs against 10 men. Amad could have been earlier. Heaven can play left-back -…
— Henry Winter (@henrywinter) March 5, 2026

Manchester United now have 10 days left of rest as they prepare to face Champions League rivals Aston Villa in what will be a must win game for either side.